Drawers such as those found in furniture are often sliding drawers comprising a system of wheels and tracks or runners. The wheels run within the track and allow the drawer to slide. Generally the wheels are attached to the side panels of the drawer.
Thin walled drawers manufactured from materials such as sheet metal are well known on the market. To reduce cost of production and environmental impact it is ideal to reduce the thickness of the side panels or walls of the drawer. A problem with reducing the thickness of the panels is that the panels are prone to failure at the point where the wheels are attached on the side panels.
Drawers also comprise multiple panels which are fixed together. Traditionally drawers comprise two side panels, a bottom panel, a front panel and a rear panel. The assembly of the drawer can be complex and comprise riveting or other similar permanent means. Drawers comprising several panels which can be assembled by clipping together a kit of parts have been described in UK2044077. However, the complex shapes are only suitable for plastic walled drawers and not suitable for thin walled metal drawers.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,872,735 describes a drawer comprising roller wheels attached to a flange extending from the side wall of the drawer. This complex shaped part is not ideal as it is expensive to manufacture in comparison to the side panels of the drawer.
A furniture piece comprising an improved roller wheel assembly is desirable.